Hero Kids - Fantasy RPG

Hero Kids is the ENnie award-winning fantasy RPG for kids aged from 4 to 10. This game offers a fast and fun introduction to RPGs, perfect for younger kids who are just getting interested in role-playing games.

NOTE: The print option includes the core rules, heroes, and monsters. Select the Print + PDF option (no extra cost) to also get the introductory adventure and printable heroes and monsters.

EXTRA NOTE: The Hero Kids - Complete Fantasy PDF Bundle includes 50% discount coupons for the softcover print versions of Hero Kids - Fantasy RPG and the Hero Kids - Fantasy Expansion - Monster Compendium (the coupons are emailed to you when you buy the bundle). So if you want the whole lot (PDFs and print version of the rules), buy the bundle then use the coupon to buy the softcover print version of Hero Kids - Fantasy RPG for half price!

Hero Kids has a simple combat and adventuring system which avoids the complex maths of full-blown systems. Hero Kids' opposed dice pool system also keeps the players involved in the game even when it's not their turn.

The combat and adventuring mechanics in Hero Kids are based on six-sided dice, so you don't need to find any unusual dice to play!

The core game comes in a 50-page PDF and includes all of the rules and play instructions, as well as 10 heroes for the kids to play, plus a set of 16 basic monsters (and all of the separate adventures come with additional monsters). The game includes male and female heroes, including Warriors, Hunters, and Warlocks as well as unique heroes like the Rogue, Brute, Healer, and Knight. All of the heroes and monsters also come with printable stand-up minis to use in combat encounters.

Additionally, this basic game pack also includes the 19-page introductory adventure 'Basement O Rats', which comes with an extra monster and five illustrated printable encounter maps. Can the kids rescue their friend Roger from the unusually large rats that have overrun the tavern basement?

Hero Kids has undergone and extensive development and playtesting to ensure the game is as simple, addictive, and engaging as possible. But don't believe me, listen to the actual players:

"The game was great, we were off and playing within a few minutes of reading the rules!"

"Was woken up at 6am this morning by my son, saying he wanted to play Hero Kids right now! There's no such thing as going back to sleep in a 7yo's universe!"

"The game was simple enough for my precocious three-year-old to enjoy, and my five year old to not be distracted from. With the included adventure we all had a lot of fun, including me."

"The art in the book is great: the character portraits are great and very evocative, bringing forth things kids interested in this will probably be familiar with anyway. There's a character who resembles Rapunzel from Disney's Tangled, another who reminds me of Prince Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender."

"The game mechanics are easy to understand and fast enough to keep young players interested and do not get in the way of the story that is unfolding."

"The only real complaint I have is that there aren't full-page coloring pages available for each of the character portraits, something my kids (and myself!) would really enjoy."

"The design is clever, well thought out, and guaranteed to make you jealous that you didn't come up with it first."

"Providing stand-ups for each character helped a lot as well - it saved me from having to dig through my existing figures to find ones that resembled the children, and it reused the wonderful art."

"A great 'starter' rpg for kids, and even better gaming experience for parents to play with their kids. The core rpg experience has been boiled down to its bare essentials here. It only takes about 15-20 minutes to read the entire rulebook and have a good enough grasp on the rules to play your first session. Games will typically take under 30 minutes to play, which short for a typical rpg session, but absolutely perfect when playing with kids."

I purchased the $5.99 PDFs, not realizing that I could have purchased a bundle which included a book, which I will need. If there is a printable version of the book, I'd be interested in that.

Could someone please direct me in how to undo/redo/add to my existing downloaded purchase. I'm new here and the array is dizzying!

Cheers,

J.M.

Justin HMarch 21, 2017 2:22 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Hi Jaye,

Unfortunately, the bundles don't include the print books, but they do include a voucher for 50% off the print book. Drop me an email at justinhalliday@gmail.com and I'll sort out your bundle.

Josh HFebruary 14, 2017 12:28 am UTC

PURCHASER

Just purchased the core PDF with rat adventure. Excited to get started but am unable to find the hero stand ups. Where can I find them?

Josh HFebruary 14, 2017 12:40 am UTC

PURCHASER

Scratch that. Found them.

Kelsey GJanuary 28, 2017 2:08 am UTC

PURCHASER

Quick question: What are the rules about monster movement or where can I find them? I didn't find them detailed anywhere in the core book.

Justin HJanuary 28, 2017 10:05 am UTC

PUBLISHER

The rules for running encounters on page 17 of the PDF apply to all characters, which includes heroes and monsters:
"Movement
Characters can move up to 4 squares each turn (including diagonally). Characters can move through their allies, but not through enemies. Walls and solid objects block movement entirely. Obstacles require 1 extra square of movement for each square the heroes enter and can grant cover. If a character is knocked prone, it costs 2 squares of movement to stand up."

Kelsey GJanuary 30, 2017 5:16 am UTC

PURCHASER

Ok - I guess I was confused by the use of the word "Character" and assumed that meant only players. Makes more sense now.

James ONovember 26, 2016 5:23 am UTC

PURCHASER

I was very pleasantly surprised with this game. My kids (1 boy, 2 girls) have *loved* playing this. This has provided hours of fun and has really charged their imaginations.

Andrew BNovember 22, 2016 12:24 am UTC

PURCHASER

The game seems like it will be loads of fun but I'm a bit chagrined to find no boy Healer and no girl Knight. All the other characters have both male and female versions but the two in MOST NEED of being separated from gender stereotyping are firmly mired in it. I know I could just make my own but that's not really the point.

It seems like the designer has gone out of his way to build a game that doesn't reinforce gender stereotypes by including boy and girl art for almost every character. But Healers can only be girls (any girl gamer will tell you why that's a problem) and Knights can only be boys (any girl will tell you why that's a problem).

I'm definitely belaboring the point here but I'm SUPER excited to play this game with my two little boy. Now I feel like I can't introduce them to a game setting in which only boys can be Knights and only Girls can be Healers. I'm also incredibly surprised that nobody seems to have mentioned this in any off the reviews I've read.

November 22, 2016 12:33 am UTC

PURCHASER

Hero Cards II has a girl brute, girl knight, and boy healer.

Justin HNovember 22, 2016 1:46 am UTC

PUBLISHER

As the other purchaser mentions, there's tons of diverse characters in the additional hero packs:
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/115788/Hero-Kids--Fantasy-Expansion--Hero-Cards-II

Hero Cards II features:
• Acrobat - Perform spectacular flips and tumbles to get in and out of trouble
• Alchemist - This bomb thrower is dangerous to enemies and allies
• Brute (Female) - The female brute is big enough to take on any enemy
• Healer (Male) - Trained in the forests of the Brecken Vale, the healer is a great addition to any group of heroes
• Hunter (Female) - On her days off from duties in the palace, this girl practices with her bow
• Knight (Female) - The knight's armor makes her almost impossible to stop
• Storm-Mage - The storm-mage can command elemental lightning against his enemies
• Swashbuckler (Female) - The swashbuckler's shipboard training focused on fighting multiple enemies
• Swashbuckler (Male) - This swashbuckler...See more was born and raised on a pirate ship
• Wolfchild - Abandoned in the forest as an infant, the wolfchild was raised by wolves

Andrew BNovember 23, 2016 7:07 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Thank you both very much for pointing that out. I'll be sure and include those in the little kit I print up for my X-Mas package.

And sincerely: thank you Justin for an awesome game. My son has been begging to join my Tuesday night D&D game and I just have to keep telling him "sorry, buddy; Dungeons & Dragons isn't for little boys." I'm sure Hero Kids will be his favorite X-Mas present.

November 23, 2016 9:39 pm UTC

PURCHASER

My nephew loves it; it's all he ever wants to do when we visit. I'm sure he won't be disappointed. :)

Nick BOctober 11, 2016 11:00 pm UTC

Is the Pdf sufficient to start playing or do I need the printed book as well?

Justin HOctober 12, 2016 12:09 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Yep, the PDF has everything you need to get started. The print book is a references book, so it doesn't have the introductory adventure or the printable miniatures.

Cameron BOctober 01, 2016 6:45 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Hi there,
I ordered the new print version of the game, and we are super excited to play, but the book indicates that a printable pdf is required to play the game. This pdf was not included with my purchase, so I was hoping to get a copy of it so we could start playing.
Thanks!

Cameron BOctober 01, 2016 6:57 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Got it! Thanks for the super fast response!

Matthieu CSeptember 21, 2016 3:01 pm UTC

Hello !
Seems there's no print version anymore ?

Justin HSeptember 21, 2016 10:24 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

I'm updating the print version to match the new Monster Compendium print book. Should be available again late next week (assuming print and shipping times).

Matthieu CSeptember 25, 2016 9:29 am UTC

Great ! I'll be waiting then.

Justin HSeptember 28, 2016 11:50 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Hi Matthieu, the Hero Kids core print book is back available now. If you're also interested in the Monster Compendium in print, wait a couple of days for me to activate that book too.

Tony ESeptember 14, 2016 2:21 am UTC

PURCHASER

Hah! I selected 'Softcover B & W Book' rather than 'PDF + Softcover...', so I didn't get the PDF! it seems like that option should just be removed since it's the same price. Apparently all the print-outs for characters, monsters, and the map & 'included campaign' are in the PDF not the softcover, despite the fact that page 14 says they're all included. I contacted the site for help getting the PDF.

Justin HSeptember 14, 2016 2:47 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Hi Tony, unfortunately I can't remove the softcover only option from the list of purchase options. Drop me an email at justinhalliday@gmail.com and I'll send you a code for the PDF.

Tony ESeptember 14, 2016 3:13 am UTC

PURCHASER

Awesome, thanks for the quick reply!

August 24, 2016 4:12 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Hey, we love the game but since my kids and I are new to RPGs we had a few questions, specifically on line of sight. what is the best way to handle allies blocking LoS of a monster? allow an attack? 1 less D6 for cover? Also, when entering a new section of a dungeon should I reveal all monsters or just those in LoS? I don't want to put too much on them but want them thinking some strategy. Thanks.

Shawn KAugust 20, 2016 11:38 pm UTC

PURCHASER

My 10 year old HP printer just died on me. when I do purchase it Can I have parts of it or all printed at a print/copy shop?

Hello, just order the print version but I don't see where I can download and the book is not showing up in my library. How can I go about getting the digital version?

Justin HAugust 08, 2016 8:56 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

You may have selected the Print option only, instead of the Print + PDF option when you purchased the product. Send me your DriveThruRPG email address to justinhalliday@gmail.com and I'll send you a voucher for the PDF.

Totally worth it. Easily expandable, easy system for kids to learn role playing. My 8 and 11 year old girls really like it. One suggestion: use lego figurines for the heroes and bad guys, they fit perfectly into the one inch grid and don't fall over al [...]

(Copied across from my posted review for the 'Complete Hero' bundle - if it's still on sale, well worth the price in my opinion) I spotted that the Hero Kids Complete Fantasy Bundle was on sale for an absolutely massive reduction - $19.95 down f [...]

First adventure has gone really well and the whole family (with kids of 4 and 8) is revved up for more. As GM I chose to be pretty flexible on the details of turn-taking, movement etc, for the sake of smoother game-play; I don't think the system as wri [...]

My son is 4 1/2 and so far he loves this. Only him and I have played so far, but I can imagine if he ever gets to play with his friends or when Mom gets to join he will love it even more. I haven't tried any other table top RPGs for him, but so happy [...]

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